By Voyager Media Staff
The Bugle, Enterprise and Sentinel newspapers took home numerous awards during the annual Illinois Press Association convention and awards ceremony, held June 8-10 in Springfield.
Voyager Media’s editorial staff won 13 awards in categories recognizing best school board coverage and government beat reporting, among others; the advertising department added another 14 awards in categories such as ad design and niche publications.
Among the top honors for the editorial department was a first place award for Best Special Section. The award recognized a one-time special insert published along with the Aug. 27 issues of the Joliet Bugle, Shorewood Sentinel and Plainfield Enterprise commemorating the 25th anniversary of the 1990 Plainfield tornado. “Where We Stand: Remembering the 1990 Tornado 25 Years Later” explored the myriad ways Plainfield and nearby towns came together following the deadly storm to rebuild structures, re-establish a new sense of community and ultimately remember the 8 minutes in August that transformed the area.
Judges commented that, “This section does a wonderful job of recapping what happens, honoring those who suffered, and providing info for the present and the future.”
Another of the paper’s first-place awards was for Best Original Column. Daniel Smrokowski won the award for his monthly ”Special Voices” column, in which Smrokowski shares the unique stories of area residents with different intellectual and developmental disabilities, as well as updates on Special Olympics Illinois.
Judges said his column was “inspiring and generally well written.”
Niles area reporter Igor Studenkov also took top honors, receiving a first place award for Government Beat Reporting and a second place award for Best School Board Coverage.
Guided by a commitment to provide its online readers with the same high-quality news content, Voyager Media’s editorial staff received a second-place award in the Best Website category for www.buglenewspapers.com. Judges said the website was a “close second” and described it as “a good site” that is easy to view and navigate.
Additionally, the sports department won third place for the Plainfield Enterprise sports section.
Among the top awards for the advertising department were first place for Best Color Ad and second place for Best House Ad for an ugly sweater contest open to readers. Advertising also clinched a third-place award for Best Ad Designer–Steve Hodge.
Fifty-nine newspapers submitted nearly 900 contest entries for the competition.
The Illinois Press Association represents 450 daily and non daily newspapers. Its headquarters are in Springfield.